Tag Archives: festivals

It's T in the Park time again and the final fling for the festival at Balado which is moving to a new home next year. We have enjoyed watching some of it on TV as we have passed the age and stage of huge crowds mixed with mud! Lots of our customers are there, though, for one of the best weekends of the UK festival calendar.

Since the weather is distinctly festival-like here - sunshine interspersed with downpours - we have been sporting summer festival frockery, minus the wellies, to get into the vicarious spirit!

Later in the month we'll be heading to the Edinburgh Jazz Festival to celebrate a friend's birthday and are especially looking forward to seeing the fabulous Gerry Jablonski Band.

Meanwhile, we are awaiting the arrival of K Frocker from London and F Frocker from Perth so that we can enjoy a family fest of our own over the next few days. The bunting is out, the fatted courgette has been killed. But what to wear?

Being big fans of live music, we have previously blogged about our love of festivals, in particular the smaller festivals which do not involve battling through the massive crowds of Glastonbury, T in the Park and other major events.

As die-hard 70s music fans, it was hard to contain our excitement and sheer delight when we heard that Mofest - the wee music festival held annually in the chief frocker's home town of Montrose (population approx 12000) - had scored Status Quo as this year's headline act. And no it isn't a tribute band, it's the real Rossi & Co who are coming to little old Mo to rock the East Links on Friday 23rd May!

It's the height of summer (allegedly) and high season for festival goers with our own local T in the Park coming up this weekend, 6th-8th July, in Kinross. Given the amount of rainfall we have been experiencing lately , it will be more like Mud in the Park and Mud Everywhere Else, but it's unlikely that anyone's enthusiasm will be dampened with Snow Patrol, Kasabian and The Stone Roses headlining the event.

Come rain or shine, music festival fans need frockery that rocks and (cue some shameless self promotion here!) we always have a good selection of affordable festival fashion in our catalogue.

Here are some of our current favourites which we reckon will brighten up the dullest of days.

The Frockers have always been big fans of festivals, but these days our personal preference is for smaller gatherings rather than giant events like Glastonbury and T in the Park. Much as we love live music, we no longer possess the coping skills for pitching tents, queuing for chemical toilets and wearing mud covered clobber for several days in a row - but we take our floppy festival hats off to those who do. At least the toilets are a vast improvement on the vintage facilities we remember from the 1970s when we were young (and/or inebriated) enough not to care!

So instead of squelching our way around vast outdoor festival sites, we are increasingly tempted by small music festivals which attract an array of local talent and do not involve camping! We especially enjoyed the Montrose Music Festival and Dundee Blues Bonanza this year, but we have been reserving most of our energy and excitement for the inaugural Isle of Skye Blues'n'Boogie Feis which takes place on 22/23 July with the inimitable Wilko Johnson headlining on both nights.

The Kyelakin event is the brainchild of Skye-based campaigner Robbie the Pict, who is auctioning his precious Runrig gold disc to get the festival off to a flying start. As well as being a great opportunity for partying (and coincidentally celebrating both Wilko and Robbie's 64th birthdays over the weekend), he believes it will help breathe new life into the local economy which was so badly hit by the (now abolished) Skye Bridge tolls.

The inaugural Vintage at Goodwood festival kicks off tomorrow with a promise to celebrate "creative British cool from the 40s, 50s,60s,70s and 80s" and a stated ambition to recreate a new, vintage focused Festival of Britain.

The three day extravaganza in Sussex is the brainchild of Geraldine and Wayne Hemingway, founders of Red or Dead and lovers of all things vintage, who wanted to bring together the fashion, music, art and culture of bygone eras to showcase Britain's rich and creative heritage.

On the music front, Vintage at Goodwood will feature an inspirational line up of world renowned bands and DJs from each of the decades as well as contemporary performers who have taken inspiration from the original artists. Performing for the first time in many years, Sandie Shaw will be a special highlight for festival goers.

There will also be five clubs on site which will replicate ballrooms, clubs and disco venues of past decades: the 1940s styled Torch Club; Let it Rock, which will celebrate 50s rock and roll culture; the Leisure Dome for easy listening and light pop; the Soul Casino Nightclub, a two room re-creation of a 1970s Mecca ballroom; and the Warehouse & Roller Disco which aims to capture the vibe "from 70s Funk and Disco, through early 80s Electro, Boogie, Rare Groove and onto early Rave and Acid House, played out in a fully recreated industrial warehouse and adjacent Roller Disco". Wow!

In addition to the music, the Vintage High Street will include shops, vintage hair styling salons, vintage cafes, restaurants and bars, as well as a marketplace packed with vintage clothing sellers. Meanwhile, the Vintage Timeline promises to "examine the lineage of art, design and the wider creative industries - culminating in Future vintage - future gazing about what we as a nation will be celebrating in 25 years".

Vintage at Goodwood certainly promises to be the most amazing weekend, but it's sadly a bit far for us to travel. We will be heading for Edinburgh instead for a flurry of fantastic Fringe frockery!

T in the Park kicks off again at Balado today, and we have it on good authority that some of our frockery will be making an appearance at Fancy Dress Friday for this year's 'Mad Hatter's T Party' theme.

Despite the recent heatwave, the weather is not looking at all promising so wellies will be a prerequisite for all festival goers, whatever else they choose to step out in. Sadly we won't be joining them this year but it promises to be another fantastic weekend with an enviable line up which includes the magnificent Muse, Eminem and Kasabian.

Boho festival frockery is one of our favourite looks and we have a good selection of maxi dresses, skirts and tops to take you through the summer festival season and beyond. Don't forget the woollies for when the temperature drops and the sun cream (just in case!), but above all remember to pack the tent poles, toilet paper and a supply of wet wipes. We speak from experience!